Gianni Tessari - Veneto

We caught up with Gianni Tessari at the start of the year and were blown away by the wines from this humble Veneto winemaker.  Gianni grew up in a winemaking family in Monteforte d’Alpone, province of Veneto and after graduating from the Agricultural Institute he started working inside the winery, experimenting and learning what no book can teach: passion, curiosity, and the desire to craft wines more complex than the sum of their parts.  In 2013 Gianni branched out on his own to create his namesake label alongside his wife Annamaria and daughter Valeria.  Gianni farms organically and crafts his wines from three Veneto DOC regions - Lessini Durello, Colli Berici, and Soave. We loved all the wines, but chose to start with the Soave DOC, which Gianni described most poetically as ‘not just the oenological characteristics, but a wine of origins, of traditions, and the history of the region… each sip is a memory, something known and already lived through.’

The Gianni Tessari Soave 2022, (our latest addition to our Italian portfolio) is a traditional blend of 80% Gargagnega and 20% Trebbiano.  In the glass you cannot help but smile and recognise Gianni’s poetry as soaring floral white-blossom, nectarine, subtle preserved lemon, orange rind, nashi pear, and granny smith apple aromatics greet the senses.  The organically farmed fruit is hand-harvested and carbonic-macerated for 3 hours (enhancing the varietal vibrancy and sense of place) before being pressed and completing fermentation with ambient yeasts.  The wine is matured on fine lees in stainless steel for 3 months, which Gianni chooses to retain freshness and a sense of place.  The palate doubles down on the generosity of the aromatics, translating the orchard and citrus fruit notes upon a mid-weight elegant silky body with beautifully balanced acidity and fruit richness.  The finish is complex with good length as the mineral energy and minor almond savoury character linger beneath the fresh floral and citrus zest character.  There is plenty to like in this honest Soave that you can’t help but reflect on the winemaking family behind it and their strong ties to the region, and there is definitely a poetry to this unwinding, and beguiling wine.